Hong Kong streetcars

I love streetcars. There’s something amazing about sailing smoothly through the downtown core of a city. Hong Kong has great system of double-deck streetcars that provide a great opportunity to see life on the busy streets.

The cars are built mostly of teak and steel, and look like they’re completely indestructible. Here’s the view from the back of one of the cars.

Two cranks turn a fabric scroll that’s lit from behind to show the destination on the outside of the train.

Even the controls look amazing. Throttle on the left, brake handle on he right. I’m not sure what the giant wheels do. I started chatting with the driver and was surprised when he said that the of the carriage is from the 1920s, and the engine and controls is from the 1980s. Absolutely amazing.